The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Turf-care vehicles, such as seated riding turf-care vehicles, stand-on riding turf-care vehicles and walk-behind turf-care vehicles generally include one or more grass cutting units for cutting grass, e.g., one or more cylindrical reel assemblies, or one or more rotatory blade grass cutting decks. For various reasons, it is important to ensure that operation of the vehicle, and particularly the cutting units, is ceased when the vehicle operator dismounts, disembarks or otherwise becomes separated from the vehicle from an operator control station or location of the vehicle.
Many known turf-care vehicles typically employ a plunger-type operator presence safety switch disposed under the seat of seated riding turf-care vehicles, in the standing platform of stand-on riding turf-care vehicles, or in the steering mechanism of walk-behind and some stand-on turf-care vehicles. Generally, such plunger switches are hard-wired into the main wiring harness of the respective vehicle and must always be activated (i.e., either depressed or undepressed) in order for the vehicle engine (e.g., an internal combustion engine or electric motor of the vehicle) and the cutting units to function in mowing operation. For example, with zero-turn stand-on and walk-behind vehicles, the plunger switch is typically disposed within the steering mechanism. In such instances at least one of the steering handles is spring loaded such that the handle must be constantly maintained by the operator in a depressed state in order for maintain the plunger switch in the activated state, whereby the cutting units are engaged and allowed to operate. Such handle activated plunger switches can be cumbersome, fatiguing and difficult to use for extended periods of times.